In order to continue its impressive surge in popularity, Doctor Who will need to adapt as the years go by. Could that include making the plot more accessible to newer fans?
Being a new fan of Doctor Who, and trying to delve into annals of the franchise, can be a daunting task. The revival already has nine seasons under its belt, and additionally various specials. When the classic series is brought into the equation, with its twenty six seasons and the television movie — along with the various spin-offs, novels, comic books, and Big Finish productions — it would seemingly be virtually impossible to catch up.
Yet, to continue to expand on the current popularity of the show, the BBC may have to find a way to make that easier. As such, it is not a surprise that, when looking at ways to keep Doctor Who relevant and help the show survive, improving that accessibility to the past may well be the biggest step in fostering its long term health. This issue was recently broached in an article by Ryan Britt of Inverse. Other than Britt’s valid point about toning down the focus on the epicness of the Time War, there is at least one other tactic that could be employed.
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Not only is Doctor Who firmly tied to the past in regards to the various points in time that the Doctor has visited, but also in regards to the continuity of the show. Learning that past, and getting to see those previous incarnations of the Doctor, would help sustain interest in the show, and potentially expand the fanbase even further.
But the question is how to do that. Perhaps the best way to do so, short of bringing classic Doctor Who back to Netflix and Hulu, would be to have special boxed sets of each of the Doctors. Yes, those longer episode arcs back in the early years meant six episodes to tell a story, but that doesn’t mean that comprehensive episode sets would not work. On the contrary, it would make the lives of fans easier, as they would no longer have to hunt down individual episodes. It would be a nice win-win — the BBC would increase income, and fans, old and new, would have an easier time when it comes to following classic stories.
Next: Doctor Who in the Dating World